Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have imaged the largest protoplanetary disk ever observed circling a young star. For the first time in visible light, Hubble has revealed the disk is unexpectedly chaotic and turbulent, with wisps of material stretching much farther above and below the disk than astronomers have seen in any similar system. Strangely, more extended filaments are only visible on one side of the disk.
New species are being discovered faster than ever before, study suggests
Dec. 23rd, 2025 09:16 amAbout 300 years ago, Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus set out on a bold quest: to identify and name every living organism on Earth. Now celebrated as the father of modern taxonomy, he developed the binomial naming system and described more than 10,000 species of plants and animals. Since his time, scientists have continued to describe new species in the quest to uncover Earth's biodiversity.
Due to its thick, vast ice sheet, Antarctica appears to be a single, continuous landmass centered over the South Pole and spanning both hemispheres of the globe. The Western Hemisphere sector of the ice sheet is shaped like a hitchhiker's thumb—an apt metaphor, because the West Antarctic ice sheet is on the go.
FIC: Farewell to the Monsters (Grimm: Nick/Renard/Juliette) [M]
Dec. 23rd, 2025 03:22 pmMy second
ficinabox story! This one is Grimm, because how could I resist when someone (*cough*
miss_ingno *cough*) requests my tiny OT3? :D
The prompt was, "canon divergence where Juliette copes better with her transformation into a Hexenbiest" - and when I thought about where to branch off and rewatched some episodes, I realised I could start right at the beginning, with her very first woge. Derail it all before it gains any ground! No secrecy to come between Nick and Juliette, no losing control, no shocking reveal in the aftermath of violence ... and if Nick was there for her first woge, she'd see his Grimm eyes, too!
Of course Nick still has issues, and Juliette is still struggling - but that's where Renard comes in, because when the two of them turn to him together, magic happens. *g*
(And so much happens in that one night that I managed to derail some other plot as well, just from having Juliette woge in front of everyone! I had so much fun with that. :D)
**
Farewell to the Monsters (10,183 words)
Fandom: Grimm (TV)
Rating: Mature
Relationship: Nick Burkhardt/Sean Renard/Juliette Silverton
Characters: Juliette Silverton, Nick Burkhardt, Sean Renard, Rosalee Calvert, Monroe, Hank Griffin
Content Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode Related, s04e08 Chupacabra, Hexenbiest reveal, Hexenbiest Psychology, Hexenbiest Sexuality, UST, Developing Relationship
Summary:
Juliette almost wished Nick didn't know what was happening to her. She could quietly deal with it on her own, get rid of it, go back to normal before anyone found out.
That would have been so much easier. Instead, she'd woged in front of everyone. And there was no turning back.
The prompt was, "canon divergence where Juliette copes better with her transformation into a Hexenbiest" - and when I thought about where to branch off and rewatched some episodes, I realised I could start right at the beginning, with her very first woge. Derail it all before it gains any ground! No secrecy to come between Nick and Juliette, no losing control, no shocking reveal in the aftermath of violence ... and if Nick was there for her first woge, she'd see his Grimm eyes, too!
Of course Nick still has issues, and Juliette is still struggling - but that's where Renard comes in, because when the two of them turn to him together, magic happens. *g*
(And so much happens in that one night that I managed to derail some other plot as well, just from having Juliette woge in front of everyone! I had so much fun with that. :D)
**
Farewell to the Monsters (10,183 words)
Fandom: Grimm (TV)
Rating: Mature
Relationship: Nick Burkhardt/Sean Renard/Juliette Silverton
Characters: Juliette Silverton, Nick Burkhardt, Sean Renard, Rosalee Calvert, Monroe, Hank Griffin
Content Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode Related, s04e08 Chupacabra, Hexenbiest reveal, Hexenbiest Psychology, Hexenbiest Sexuality, UST, Developing Relationship
Summary:
Juliette almost wished Nick didn't know what was happening to her. She could quietly deal with it on her own, get rid of it, go back to normal before anyone found out.
That would have been so much easier. Instead, she'd woged in front of everyone. And there was no turning back.
Change in plans
Dec. 23rd, 2025 02:03 pmUnfortunately the true cost of the ferry trip to Santander turns out to be a lot higher than expected, even if I spend the night in the lounge rather than a cabin, and I have reluctantly decided to fly instead - it costs about £200 less and looks to be a lot less hassle apart from the usual airport nonsense. Many apologies to everyone who suggested alternatives.
A Torrent of Faces by James Blish & Norman L. Knight
Dec. 23rd, 2025 09:02 am
In honour of Blish's Prometheus nomination, Blish and Knight's classic fascist utopia!
A Torrent of Faces by James Blish & Norman L. Knight
The emission of carbon dioxide (CO₂) is one of the primary factors contributing to air pollution and climate change on Earth. In recent years, energy engineers have thus been trying to develop systems that could reduce the presence of CO₂ in the air.
Promising new superconducting material discovered with the help of AI
Dec. 23rd, 2025 08:55 amTohoku University and Fujitsu Limited have successfully used AI to derive new insights into the superconductivity mechanism of a new superconducting material.
Rare Hall effect reveals design pathways for advanced spintronic materials
Dec. 23rd, 2025 08:48 amScientists at Ames National Laboratory, in collaboration with Indranil Das's group at the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (India), have found a surprising electronic feature in transitional metal-based compounds that could pave the way for a new class of spintronic materials for computing and memory technologies.
Scientists crack ancient salt crystals to unlock secrets of 1.4 billion-year-old air
Dec. 23rd, 2025 08:44 amMore than a billion years ago, in a shallow basin across what is now northern Ontario, a subtropical lake much like modern-day Death Valley evaporated under the sun's gentle heat, leaving behind crystals of halite—rock salt.
Why a chiral magnet is a direction-dependent street for electrons
Dec. 23rd, 2025 08:31 amRIKEN physicists have discovered for the first time why the magnitude of the electron flow depends on direction in a special kind of magnet. This finding could help to realize future low-energy devices.
The universe may be lopsided, new research suggests
Dec. 23rd, 2025 08:28 amThe shape of the universe is not something we often think about. My colleagues and I have published a new study that suggests it could be asymmetric or lopsided, meaning not the same in every direction.
Advent calendar 23
Dec. 23rd, 2025 01:50 pmChristmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo lying on the rug.
[...]
"Merry Christmas, Marmee! Many of them! Thank you for our books. We read some, and mean to every day," they all cried in chorus.
"Merry Christmas, little daughters! I'm glad you began at once, and hope you will keep on. But I want to say one word before we sit down. Not far away from here lies a poor woman with a little newborn baby. Six children are huddgled into one bed to keep from freezingm for they have no fire. There is nothing to eat over there, and they oldest boy came to tell me they were suffering hunger and cold. My girls, will you give them your breakfast as a Christmas present?"
A sudden withdrawal
Dec. 23rd, 2025 12:34 pmI am an idiot who forgot my blood pressure medicine when I came down to Devon to see my parents.
So this morning I went in to the local pharmacy. Who can't help me because NHS England and NHS Scotland are two different organisations. But they told me to call NHS 111 and ask them for help.
NHS 111 said "We don't have anyone available who can prescribe, call us back after 6:30PM, or talk to a local GP as "Unregistered or Temporary Residents". So we went in to my dad's GP and they said "We don't help in that situation, go talk to NHS 111, they'll help you." - which would seem to leave me in an endless loop.
Just in case, I called my GP surgery in Scotland, who said that they can't prescribe in England.
At which point, as nobody is considering this very important, I think about the only options are to either call back after 6:30 tonight or to just do without for a week. Which, having checked online, doesn't look like a great idea.
Edit: I called them back at 7:00. Got through to someone helpful who has given me the location of a pharmacy that we're going to visit first thing tomorrow morning, who have been instructed to help us.
No idea why that didn't happen the first time!
So this morning I went in to the local pharmacy. Who can't help me because NHS England and NHS Scotland are two different organisations. But they told me to call NHS 111 and ask them for help.
NHS 111 said "We don't have anyone available who can prescribe, call us back after 6:30PM, or talk to a local GP as "Unregistered or Temporary Residents". So we went in to my dad's GP and they said "We don't help in that situation, go talk to NHS 111, they'll help you." - which would seem to leave me in an endless loop.
Just in case, I called my GP surgery in Scotland, who said that they can't prescribe in England.
At which point, as nobody is considering this very important, I think about the only options are to either call back after 6:30 tonight or to just do without for a week. Which, having checked online, doesn't look like a great idea.
Edit: I called them back at 7:00. Got through to someone helpful who has given me the location of a pharmacy that we're going to visit first thing tomorrow morning, who have been instructed to help us.
No idea why that didn't happen the first time!
Passive adaptation mechanism reveals how cells balance their protein levels
Dec. 23rd, 2025 05:30 amEvery cell depends on proteins to function and stay healthy. These proteins are made inside the cell from amino acids, but cannot simply accumulate inside the cell forever. Once they have done their job or become damaged, the cell needs to clear them out.
Robotic system synthesizes hundreds of metal complexes to find potential new antibiotic
Dec. 23rd, 2025 05:00 amResearchers have used a cutting-edge robotic system capable of synthesizing hundreds of metal complexes to develop a possible antibiotic candidate—offering fresh hope in the global fight against drug-resistant infections.
36 Hours to Reveals
Dec. 23rd, 2025 10:06 pmWe're so close! This year, Yuletide reveals are at 9pm UTC on 24 December - that has changed since last year.
COUNTDOWN TO REVEALS
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( Below the cut are examples of spacing that’s too big, too little, and juuuuust right. )
If the spacing in your work is wacky, we recommend editing it to avoid putting off potential readers.
Before July 2024, the default setting for comments allowed on your work was "Registered users and guests can comment." In July, AO3 changed that so that the default setting is "Only registered users can comment." That means that if you posted your Yuletide work without changing the settings, no one can comment on your work without logging into their account.
If that matches your preferences, that's great. If you'd like to make it possible for anyone who reads your work to comment, please edit your work and change the setting. This setting is directly above the Work Text field.
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If your fandom is a subset of a canonical tag (like an RPF fandom that belongs in Actor RPF, or a season of a Let's Play fandom that has an overarching canonical), we recommend tagging with the parent fandom. Please reach out to mods if you're not sure that's what you should do.
Please check these guidelines for whether to post treats in the main Yuletide collection (closes Dec 24) or the Yuletide Madness collection (closes Dec 25). Unlike in some exchanges, Yuletide's treating period does not continue indefinitely. Please get your treats in before reveals - or you'll need to wait until next year.
Schedule, Rules, & Collection | Contact Mods | Participant DW | Participant LJ | Pinch Hits on DW | Discord | Tag set | Tag set app
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Tips
Formatting
Getting your story up on AO3 is the main thing. But, now it's there, please check it over again before reveals - especially to see if you've left in any bits you're going to replace like [xxx]. But also please check for legibility - check for text with no gaps between paragraphs, or text with massive gaps between paragraphs. Click/tap for more information...
Issues often arise when posting from Google Docs. You can use this Google doc or this extension to help convert your document to HTML for a better copy/paste experience. The problem with italics and punctuation can also be solved by including the punctuation inside the italics tags.
If your story has no space between paragraphs, check to see if you pasted your story into the HTML tab instead of the Rich Text tab. Paragraph spacing occasionally gets added to places like summaries when you edit them, so you might want to double-check that also!
( Below the cut are examples of spacing that’s too big, too little, and juuuuust right. )
If the spacing in your work is wacky, we recommend editing it to avoid putting off potential readers.
Your comment settings
In recent years, AO3 changed the default settings for comments on your work. If you want to allow comments from guests/readers who aren't logged in, check your work. Click/tap for info...
Before July 2024, the default setting for comments allowed on your work was "Registered users and guests can comment." In July, AO3 changed that so that the default setting is "Only registered users can comment." That means that if you posted your Yuletide work without changing the settings, no one can comment on your work without logging into their account.
If that matches your preferences, that's great. If you'd like to make it possible for anyone who reads your work to comment, please edit your work and change the setting. This setting is directly above the Work Text field.
Tagging and "Unspecified Fandom"
Please tag your work accurately, including warnings. We encourage you to use "Unspecified Fandom", alongside a specific tag, to help users find a fandom that isn't wrangled yet. Please reach out if you're not sure how to tag a new or non-canonical fandom. Click/tap for info...
For warnings, Choose Not to Warn is a valid warning tag. You may wish to use the end notes if there is content that you don't want to spoil with specific tags.
If your fandom is completely new, please use the tag that was approved into the tag set. These tags were formulated to meet archive guidelines and will be more quickly canonized, so that your work can be found from the Fandoms page of the collection. We recommend you also use "Unspecified Fandom", because this will show up in the fandoms list immediately, even if the actual fandom tag isn't wrangled straight away. Please do not tag your work with Unspecified Fandom as the only fandom tag. Instead, tag with both Unspecified Fandom and the actual fandom tag.
If your fandom is a subset of a canonical tag (like an RPF fandom that belongs in Actor RPF, or a season of a Let's Play fandom that has an overarching canonical), we recommend tagging with the parent fandom. Please reach out to mods if you're not sure that's what you should do.
Your author's notes
Please keep these positive. Please don't identify yourself - no social media links! Also, please don't apologize for your work, tell your recipient all about what a tough time you had writing, or otherwise ask your recipient to accept a negative sentiment along with their gift.Treats!!
Additional works are warmly welcomed for participants signed up to Yuletide* and all additional pinch hitters.Please check these guidelines for whether to post treats in the main Yuletide collection (closes Dec 24) or the Yuletide Madness collection (closes Dec 25). Unlike in some exchanges, Yuletide's treating period does not continue indefinitely. Please get your treats in before reveals - or you'll need to wait until next year.
Not all users accept treats
Please do not create treats for: Arsenic, BluebirdCT, Budouka, couch1141, theblakery, Witgifu. This list is subject to change, as you can change the setting to accept treats (or not) at any time. Check with mods if unsure.Please either comment logged-in or sign a name. Unsigned anonymous comments will be left screened.
Weather Talk
Dec. 22nd, 2025 09:26 pmThe river came up and did a little of very half hearted flooding yesterday, mostly it just ran bank full. Today it didn't rain till well after dark. Tomorrow's forecast is for 1.25 inches, enough to bring the river right back up again, but I doubt the flooding will be bad here very close to the headwaters of our Russian River.
The cows wandered into the horse pasture yesterday evening, prompting Donald and I to go out, cut a tree and a limb off the fence (they were fairly small) and get the fence working. My it is nice to have repaired the wire under the road! It makes the whole system work better. The meter says it is carrying 8 jewels, which is enough to make you really, really, really wish you had never touched the wire. Speaking of he cows, they seem calm and happy so whatever was scaring them either isn't there any more or isn't in this pasture. Since there really is no boundary except a wire fence (with the gate open) I hope that whatever it was has moved on. Donald and I walked from the top to the bottom of Jungle Pasture today and saw nothing out of the ordinary. No tracks even.
Due to the forecast of flooding and holiday traffic I took Donald to the Smart Train today. Tomorrow there might be flooding and it will be raining. Today it was a pretty nice drive.
Tomorrow. Chores around the house, replace light fixture at the Red Barn.
The cows wandered into the horse pasture yesterday evening, prompting Donald and I to go out, cut a tree and a limb off the fence (they were fairly small) and get the fence working. My it is nice to have repaired the wire under the road! It makes the whole system work better. The meter says it is carrying 8 jewels, which is enough to make you really, really, really wish you had never touched the wire. Speaking of he cows, they seem calm and happy so whatever was scaring them either isn't there any more or isn't in this pasture. Since there really is no boundary except a wire fence (with the gate open) I hope that whatever it was has moved on. Donald and I walked from the top to the bottom of Jungle Pasture today and saw nothing out of the ordinary. No tracks even.
Due to the forecast of flooding and holiday traffic I took Donald to the Smart Train today. Tomorrow there might be flooding and it will be raining. Today it was a pretty nice drive.
Tomorrow. Chores around the house, replace light fixture at the Red Barn.